Climatology: priorities for MLA

1
Climatology priorities for MLA

• Greg Harper
• Manager
• Strategic Science, Livestock Production
  Innovation
• Meat and Livestock Australia

2
On-farm issues

• Fertiliser requirements
• rate will be dependent on biomass production 
• Wet years vs dry years
• Forward purchasing vs over purchasing
• Stocking rates. 
• Significant financial, welfare and environmental
  implications associated with de-stocking while in
  drought.
• Fodder requirements.  
• Why do it if you know it is going to be an above
  average season.
• Enterprise mix. 
• cereals into the rotation in drier years (in the
  high rainfall zone) and visa versa in the drier
  regions
• Pasture renovation. 
• wouldnt buy pasture seed and set paddocks up for
  sowing pasture (i.e. de-stock, weed control) if a
  dry spring was forecast.

3
National issues

• Challenges of current carbon awareness in the
  corporate and public sectors
• Data and glitzy communication tools
• Evidence-based policy
• Measurement technologies
• Rumen microbe genetic improvement
• Burning (strategic or otherwise)

4
Priority areas for consideration

• Climate change
• Managing climatic variability
• Emissions
• C Trading / Sequestration
• Impacts of global warming
• What is currently being funded by MLA?

5
Climate change

• MLAs investments could be trivial
• Links between emissions and the drivers of change
  
• Seasonal variability
• Influencing policy and public opinion
• Informing stakeholders about progress in the
  debate

6
Managing climatic variability

• Managing Climate Variability Program
• Embedded in the More Beef from Pastures training
  and education program
• AussieGrass (each state has a version)
• GRASP, simulation model with relevance to pasture
  grazing industries
• Grain Supply/demand modelling

7
GHG Emissions

• Finding the correct numbers and the uncertainties
• CO2
• Direct and indirect
• Herd and enterprise structures
• the grazing animal (more in feedlot, more in the
  breeder herd)
• Nitrous oxide (from the manure)
• Measurement in specific environments
• Focus on the grazing contribution, because it is
  a bigger contribution (25M cattle nationally)

8
GHG Emissions

• Current investments
• Kangaroo emissions
• Feed additives
• Rumen manipulations (Oils)
• Metabolic pathways
• Metabolomics
• Measurement in specific environments
• OpenPath Laser
• Lifecycle analysis

9
Effects of warming

• Feedlot operational planning
• Biosecurity CRC
• Surveillance of exotic diseases
• Distribution of existing ecto and endo parasites

10
Sequestration and trading

• Small investments on possible futures for the PM
• Realisation that much is outside MLAs control
• Our role in interpretation for industry
• StSc
• How grazing relates to carbon sequestration in
  soils?

11
Strategy

• Development of a draft policy and terms of
  reference for a broader approach
• Commission a review of the field
• Define a policy and embedded strategy

12
What we would like to do? Gap analysis

• Review of RD
• Gap analysis
• main players
• dominant paradigms
• Risk analysis around particular scenarios
• Strategic Plan
• Policy framework
• MLA
• Redmeat industries
• Communication Plan (immediate requirement)
• Glitzy tools for the urban community and to
  counter misinformation
• Focus on the grazing contribution, because it is
  a bigger contribution (25M cattle nationally)
• Develop and advisory structure

13
Pathways to market adoption

• Rainfall to Pasture Outlook Tool
• Based on simpler models
• Easy to apply but valuable in application

14
Key people

• Ian Johnsson (GM, LPI)
• Malcolm Sedgwick (Manager, Environment)
• Rodd Dyer (Manager, Northern)
• Des Reinhart (Manager, Feedlots)